Working in the Judiciary in a State That Does Not Rule by Islam
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Fatwa No. ( 1329 )
Q: 1 - If I am a judge in an Islamic state, and it does not rule by the Book of Allah and the Sunnah of His Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), is my salary lawful or forbidden? 2 - And if I am a lawyer in that state, is my salary lawful or forbidden? 3 - And if I am a professor teaching non-Islamic rulings and laws, is my salary lawful or forbidden?
A: First: One who assumes the role of judge and rules by other than what Allah has revealed has several conditions: 1 - One who rules by other than what Allah has revealed from man-made laws, knowing this and exploiting them and not caring about it, is a disbeliever by the consensus of the scholars, and what he takes as salary or wage for that is illicit and purely forbidden, and it is not permissible for him to take it. 2 - One who rules by other than what Allah has revealed, knowing this, but he does not consider it permissible, nor is he heedless; rather, what drives him to it in some cases is tribalism for a relative, for example, or taking a bribe, or anger at the one he ruled against, or
other types of desire; he is sinful, committing a major sin, but it does not take him out of Islam; he is a believer with faith in him, and a sinner by committing a major sin. 3 - One who rules by other than what Allah has revealed due to his ignorance is sinful, and he must withdraw from the judiciary and repent to Allah for what occurred from him; because he is not qualified for the judiciary, rather he is one of the two judges threatened with the Fire, namely the one who judges people based on ignorance, and the one who is unjust in judgment, and it is not permissible for him to take a wage for it. 4 - One who rules in a case by other than the correct ruling after exerting effort in it and doing his utmost, and he is among the people of knowledge in the rulings of the Shari'ah, is not sinful; rather, he is rewarded for his independent legal reasoning, and he is excused for his error, and it is permissible for him to take the wage or salary assigned to him. Second: As for one who acts as an agent for others, which is commonly called a (lawyer), in a case in a state that rules by man-made laws contrary to the Islamic Shari'ah, every case in which he defends falsehood knowing it, relying on man-made laws in his defense, is a disbeliever if he considers that permissible or is heedless and does not care about opposing the Book and Sunnah with what people have established as laws, and what he takes as wage for this is illicit. And every case in which he defends falsehood knowing it and believing it is forbidden, but what drives him to it is his greed for winning the case to obtain the wage for it, is sinful, committing a crime among the major sins, and what he takes as wage for that is illicit and not permissible for him. As for one who defends his client in a case believing he is right according to the Shari'ah, and exerts effort in that with what he knows of the evidence of Islamic legislation, he is rewarded for his work, excused for his error, and entitled to the wage for his defense. And as for one who defends a right in reality for his brother, and he believes it is a right, he is rewarded and entitled to the agreed-upon wage with the one who appointed him. Third: Teaching man-made laws or studying them to expose their falsity, distinguish their truth from their falsehood, and clarify the nobility, perfection, and comprehensiveness of the Islamic Shari'ah for everything that rectifies the condition of the servants in their worship and transactions is permissible, and it may become obligatory if the need calls for it to establish the truth and abolish falsehood, and to alert and educate the Muslim community so that they hold fast to their religion and are not deceived by the doubts of the deviants, and those who promote ruling by laws. And for such work, it is permissible to take a wage. As for teaching man-made laws out of desire for them, promoting them, equating them with Islamic legislation, or opposing it, this is hostility to Allah and His Messenger, and clear disbelief
People [are bound] by laws, and what he takes as wages for this is illicit gain. Every case in which he defends falsehood, knowing it and believing it to be forbidden, but is driven to do so by his greed for winning the case to obtain the fee, is sinful, committing a crime among the major sins, and what he takes as wages for it is illicit gain that is not permissible for him. However, if he defends his client in a case believing that he is right according to the Shari'ah, and he exerts effort in this based on what he knows of the evidence of Islamic legislation, then he is rewarded for his work, excused for any error, and entitled to the wage for his defense. As for one who defends a right in reality for his brother, believing it to be a right, he is rewarded and entitled to the agreed-upon wage with the one who appointed him. Thirdly: Teaching or studying man-made laws to expose their falsity, distinguish their truth from their falsehood, and clarify the sublimity, perfection, and comprehensiveness of the Islamic Shari'ah for everything that rectifies the condition of the servants in their worship and transactions is permissible, and it may become obligatory if the need calls for it, to establish the truth and invalidate falsehood, and to alert and educate the Muslim community so that they hold fast to their religion and are not deceived by the doubts of the deviants and those who promote the adjudication of man-made laws. And such work permits taking a wage for it. However, teaching man-made laws out of desire for them, promoting them, equating them with Islamic legislation, or opposing it, is hostility to Allah and His Messenger and clear disbelief.
and straying from the straight path, so taking a wage for it is illicit gain and evil upon evil. We ask Allah for well-being and seek refuge in Him from abandonment. Success is from Allah, and may Allah send prayers and blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family, and his Companions.
Q: 1 - If I am a judge in an Islamic state, and it does not rule by the Book of Allah and the Sunnah of His Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), is my salary lawful or forbidden? 2 - And if I am a lawyer in that state, is my salary lawful or forbidden? 3 - And if I am a professor teaching non-Islamic rulings and laws, is my salary lawful or forbidden?
A: First: One who assumes the role of judge and rules by other than what Allah has revealed has several conditions: 1 - One who rules by other than what Allah has revealed from man-made laws, knowing this and exploiting them and not caring about it, is a disbeliever by the consensus of the scholars, and what he takes as salary or wage for that is illicit and purely forbidden, and it is not permissible for him to take it. 2 - One who rules by other than what Allah has revealed, knowing this, but he does not consider it permissible, nor is he heedless; rather, what drives him to it in some cases is tribalism for a relative, for example, or taking a bribe, or anger at the one he ruled against, or
other types of desire; he is sinful, committing a major sin, but it does not take him out of Islam; he is a believer with faith in him, and a sinner by committing a major sin. 3 - One who rules by other than what Allah has revealed due to his ignorance is sinful, and he must withdraw from the judiciary and repent to Allah for what occurred from him; because he is not qualified for the judiciary, rather he is one of the two judges threatened with the Fire, namely the one who judges people based on ignorance, and the one who is unjust in judgment, and it is not permissible for him to take a wage for it. 4 - One who rules in a case by other than the correct ruling after exerting effort in it and doing his utmost, and he is among the people of knowledge in the rulings of the Shari'ah, is not sinful; rather, he is rewarded for his independent legal reasoning, and he is excused for his error, and it is permissible for him to take the wage or salary assigned to him. Second: As for one who acts as an agent for others, which is commonly called a (lawyer), in a case in a state that rules by man-made laws contrary to the Islamic Shari'ah, every case in which he defends falsehood knowing it, relying on man-made laws in his defense, is a disbeliever if he considers that permissible or is heedless and does not care about opposing the Book and Sunnah with what people have established as laws, and what he takes as wage for this is illicit. And every case in which he defends falsehood knowing it and believing it is forbidden, but what drives him to it is his greed for winning the case to obtain the wage for it, is sinful, committing a crime among the major sins, and what he takes as wage for that is illicit and not permissible for him. As for one who defends his client in a case believing he is right according to the Shari'ah, and exerts effort in that with what he knows of the evidence of Islamic legislation, he is rewarded for his work, excused for his error, and entitled to the wage for his defense. And as for one who defends a right in reality for his brother, and he believes it is a right, he is rewarded and entitled to the agreed-upon wage with the one who appointed him. Third: Teaching man-made laws or studying them to expose their falsity, distinguish their truth from their falsehood, and clarify the nobility, perfection, and comprehensiveness of the Islamic Shari'ah for everything that rectifies the condition of the servants in their worship and transactions is permissible, and it may become obligatory if the need calls for it to establish the truth and abolish falsehood, and to alert and educate the Muslim community so that they hold fast to their religion and are not deceived by the doubts of the deviants, and those who promote ruling by laws. And for such work, it is permissible to take a wage. As for teaching man-made laws out of desire for them, promoting them, equating them with Islamic legislation, or opposing it, this is hostility to Allah and His Messenger, and clear disbelief
People [are bound] by laws, and what he takes as wages for this is illicit gain. Every case in which he defends falsehood, knowing it and believing it to be forbidden, but is driven to do so by his greed for winning the case to obtain the fee, is sinful, committing a crime among the major sins, and what he takes as wages for it is illicit gain that is not permissible for him. However, if he defends his client in a case believing that he is right according to the Shari'ah, and he exerts effort in this based on what he knows of the evidence of Islamic legislation, then he is rewarded for his work, excused for any error, and entitled to the wage for his defense. As for one who defends a right in reality for his brother, believing it to be a right, he is rewarded and entitled to the agreed-upon wage with the one who appointed him. Thirdly: Teaching or studying man-made laws to expose their falsity, distinguish their truth from their falsehood, and clarify the sublimity, perfection, and comprehensiveness of the Islamic Shari'ah for everything that rectifies the condition of the servants in their worship and transactions is permissible, and it may become obligatory if the need calls for it, to establish the truth and invalidate falsehood, and to alert and educate the Muslim community so that they hold fast to their religion and are not deceived by the doubts of the deviants and those who promote the adjudication of man-made laws. And such work permits taking a wage for it. However, teaching man-made laws out of desire for them, promoting them, equating them with Islamic legislation, or opposing it, is hostility to Allah and His Messenger and clear disbelief.
and straying from the straight path, so taking a wage for it is illicit gain and evil upon evil. We ask Allah for well-being and seek refuge in Him from abandonment. Success is from Allah, and may Allah send prayers and blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family, and his Companions.
Source
www.alifta.gov.sa
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.